Moorland fires

joanlawson

My daughter lives on the edge of Marsden Moor in Yorkshire, which is a very beautiful area protected by the National Trust. While visiting her today, we saw thick black smoke in the sky, and then we could see that the moor was on fire. It got worse and worse, until there were high flames leaping right across the moors, approaching some farmhouses lower down the valley. Luckily, my daughter's house is the other side of the valley, so we weren't in danger, but it was still very scary to watch how quickly the fires spread. There were helicopters dropping water, and six fire engines, but by the time we left at about 9pm, the fires were still burning.

We have heard on the local news that there were four separate fires, engulfing more than 1,200 acres of the land. The Police suspect that they were started deliberately as some men were seen leaving speedily on quad bikes just as the fires began.

Marsden Moor is designated a Site of Specific Scientific Interest, and the fires will wipe out many animals, including breeding birds and mountain hares. Lots of people go walking on the moors, so there were fears that some people could be in danger, as well as the people in the farmhouses. It's a disaster for the area, so what kind of people would do a thing like that? It's also a worry because it could so easily have been on my daughter's side of the valley. Her cottage is right on the edge of the moor, so I dread to think what the consequences could have been.

Joan

ratface

Hi Joan,

How some people get their thrills in life is beyond me!

If it was arson bet the people who started it would be the ones who shouted the loudest if someone set light to their homes.

Hope the fires didn't cause too much damage.

Ratface

daylily

Hi Joan,
I know the area very well, used to spend a lot of time there bird watching.
The people who do this are blxxdy morons. The grouse will be nesting now, in fact the young have probably hatched.

It's a spectatular area and will take ages to regenerate. They have been doing a lot of work up there to re-establish the heather etc

Arson is a vile, mindless crime and rightly has a severe sentence.
Hopefully they will be caught.
So glad your daughter was safe and hope the firefighters get it under control soon. Funny stuff peat- it can smoulder away for ages underneath then break out again.

barbara12

Hi Joan
This is awful...the land is so dry...I hope you daughter will be ok...sometimes it can be down to the rubbish that people leave... glass is a big cause of these fires ....hopefully they can get it out very soon.
Barbara x

joanlawson

I've just read that a blazing quad bike was the cause of the fire. Police are still looking for the owner of the bike, so it sounds as though it might have been stolen and then set on fire. I understand that the fire is under contol now, but with the dry weather, it could break out again if it is still smouldering.

If you look at the picture on this link, you can see exactly how it looked from my daughter's cottage- very scary :shock:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leeds-13028340

This link gives you a 360 degree view of the moorland, so you can see what a lovely area it is.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/bradford/360/version2_marsden_moor.shtml

Joan

julie47

Hi joan

Yes we heard about the fires this morning on real radio (leeds)....we heard that water was being dropped from the air. Glad it is now under control and that it doesn't spark again.
Hope they catch the culprit.
And I hope no walkers were hurt.

Juliepf x